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The main reason why green tea benefits health and as a result save lives in general is due to the rich presence of catechin polyphenols, particularly pigallocatechin gallate (EGCG). EGCG is a powerful antioxidant that can reduce the growth of cancer cells and also destroy them without harming healthy cells. A research in the University of Purdue has also concluded on the thesis that how a certain compound present in green tea can stop cancer cells from growing.

Furthermore, another life-saving health benefit of green tea is its ability to lower down cholesterol levels and improve the ratio between High-Density Lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol and Low-Density Lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol, of which the former is good while the latter is bad. The EGCG in green tea is a compound that can benefit our health as it can decrease the LDL cholesterol levels and from forming undesirable stop blood clots in the process of thrombosis, which can lead to blockage of the blood vessel and eventually leading to heart attacks and strokes.

Besides its medicinal value which can save lives, green tea can also offer additional health benefits, such as in the fitness field. Reports have said that drinking green tea can cause one to use up more calories. A recent study on the health benefits of green tea showed that the drink can help dieters. As stated in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition (1999), men who take both caffeine and green tea burn down more calories than men who only take caffeine or a placebo.

Another desired benefit of green tea to save lives is its bacteria-destroying characteristic. How green tea benefits one's health in this area is that it can help one to prevent food poisoning and also reduce the possibility of tooth decay. The compounds found in green tea kill the bacteria which cause food poisoning and other bacteria that cause dental plaque to form.

For more than four thousand years, Asians have been using green tea to treat everything from life-threatening diseases such as headaches to cancer. It is believed that the Chinese Emperor Shen Nung was the first person to have discovered green tea for consumption. Emperor Shen Nung was described to have been boiling some water in a pot when the leaves of a neighboring plant fell into his pot. The leaves that have fallen in are actually from Camellia sinensis, the herbal plant from which green tea is extracted.

Currently, studies are being conducted all around the world to produce solid evidence of the benefits that can be brought about by green tea to save lives. The 1994 edition of the Journal of National Cancer Institute showed the results of a study which stated that a vital health benefit of drinking green tea is that it can reduce the risk of esophageal cancer in Chinese people by up to 60%.

It has been discovered that green tea has more life-saving benefits as compared to Chinese teas like black tea and oolong tea, all of which come from the plant Camellia sinensis. The key factor that makes green tea different is the process by which it is prepared. In other words, the health benefits of green tea can be attributed to how the Camellia sinensis leaves are steamed. The process of steaming maintains the EGCG of green tea, which brings the health benefit, from oxidization. However, the leaves of black tea and oolong tea are fermented instead of being steamed, thus causing the health-benefiting EGCG of the two other teas becomes medicinally less effective.

A really noteworthy beverage, green tea is used to improve the one's health in a variety of ways and hence save lives. As such, its usage will become more and more widespread.

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